News

Deputy Secretary General Rose Gottemoeller visited Tirana on Friday (14 December 2018), thanking Prime Minister Edi Rama for Albania's valuable contributions to NATO. In a press point with Defence Minister Olta Xhaçka, Ms. Gottemoeller praised Albania's contributions in Kosovo and Afghanistan, as well as in NATO's multinational battlegroup in Latvia. She stressed that NATO is committed to Albania's security, including with plans for a fifty-million Euro investment at Kuçovë Air Base. While in Tirana, Ms. Gottemoeller also met with Foreign Minister Ditmir Bushati and other senior officials.

Today, the Institutions in Kosovo have announced the adoption of the three laws initiating the process of transition of the Kosovo Security Force.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko met on Thursday (13 December 2018) to discuss developments in and around the Sea of Azov and the Alliance’s strong support for Ukraine. Mr. Stoltenberg reaffirmed NATO’s full support for Ukraine’s territorial integrity and sovereignty, noting that NATO has stepped up its presence in the Black Sea region over the past few years and will continue to assess its posture.

Dr Stephan Kieninger, fellow at Johns Hopkins University, School of Advanced International Studies, is the author of The Diplomacy of Détente: Cooperative Security Policies from Helmut Schmidt to George Shultz. He presented and discussed his book during a visit to NATO Headquarters in Brussels, Belgium on 5 November, 2018.

Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg welcomed His Majesty King Abdullah II of Jordan to NATO Headquarters on Wednesday (12 December 2018) for talks on the Alliance’s partnership with Amman, as well as regional security challenges. His Majesty participated in a meeting of the North Atlantic Council, addressing security challenges facing the Middle East and North Africa, including the fight against terrorism. At the meeting, Mr. Stoltenberg praised Jordan’s role in promoting regional security, and its active role in the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS.

Senior officials from NATO met their counterparts from the European Union today (10 December) to take stock of recent activities and explore further areas for engagement on cyber defence.

NATO and the European Union signed an agreement on Monday 10 December to cooperate in promoting good governance in the defence and security sector. As part of this agreement, the European Union will contribute 2 million EUR to the NATO Building Integrity (BI) Trust Fund for 2019-2022.

Today, I called both President Vučić and Mr Haradinaj to brief them on the outcome of Wednesday's meeting of NATO Foreign Ministers on the Western Balkans. I underlined that both Belgrade and Pristina should show calm and restraint, and avoid any provocative statements or actions.

NATO Foreign Ministers concluded two days of meetings in Brussels on Wednesday (5 December 2018), focused on issues including the INF Treaty, the Sea of Azov, the Western Balkans, Afghanistan, and the Alliance's new training mission in Iraq. At the conclusion of the meeting, Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg noted that Foreign Ministers will next meet in Washington in April 2019, marking 70 years since the Alliance's founding. He added that Allied leaders will also meet later next year.

Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg announced on Wednesday (5 December 2018) that he has appointed Sir Nicholas Kay of the United Kingdom as the next NATO Senior Civilian Representative in Afghanistan. Mr. Stoltenberg made the announcement following a meeting of Foreign Ministers on the NATO-led Resolute Support Mission.